All Chapters of Center Land (Book 3 of Kendra's Journey): Chapter 21 - Chapter 30

Both Felix and Olga expressed their surprise in the fact that Ari wasn’t amongst the group when they returned to them.“We’ve been gone a good long time,” Felix mused. “She should have calmed down and come back to apologize by now.”“How little you know of your wife,” Kendra snipped under her breath as she tightened the cinch on her saddle.Taken aback by his cousin’s remark, he said, “I think I know her as good as anyone.”Swinging into the saddle with the ease of an experienced rider, Kendra did her best to hide the wince as her tender, overused groin settled against the leather seat. “If you did, then, you’d know that Ari doesn’t believe in apologizing.  It’s not the soldier’s way.  Center Land teaches them to take responsibility for their actions. Own them, but never apologize for them.”He placed his hand on her horse’s neck an

The group rode in silence.  Although they knew that it would not be pleasant, cauterizing Ari’s wounds proved to be a more emotionally traumatic task than they’d imagined it would be.  Her screams from the pain were not only heart-wrenching, but were of deep concern since they were very close to the valley of creatures.  Two terminator pigs would be the least of their worries if the creatures on the other side of the hill took notice of their presence.Although she harbored dislike for Ari after the way she’d behaved toward the very brave and impressive Kendra after she’d saved her from that amazon woman and a touch of jealousy over the fact that she had Felix and didn’t really deserve him, Alice couldn’t help the deep sense of pity and remorse over what happened to Ari. No one, not even a bitch like Ari, deserved what happened to her.They’d traveled about thirty minutes when a half dozen amazon women on horseba

It was only a matter of minutes before a small group of amazon guards rode up on horseback.  Like the women, the horses were oversized.  Even though the ones that Kendra and her companions rode were the size of draft horses on the surface of earth, the ones that the amazon women sat astride made the ones that Kendra and her companions rode seem like small ponies. “You’re a brave one, Trudy Desmond,” barked the head guard.“Look at the girl on the travois, Gilda,” Trudy said to the guard. “She needs help now.”After a brief second of indecision, Gilda urged her horse closer to Ari. The sound of her sucking in air permeated their ears. “What beast got ahold of her?”“We’ll tell you, but we’re wasting time standing here,” Kendra boldly said.  “We traveled an easy hour to get here.  She’s been in pain for some time now.”The guard g

Felix paced the long corridor of the infirmary. His mind was so preoccupied with guilt and worry over Ari’s condition that he barely noticed the patients laying in their beds as he breezed past the open doors.They’d given him very little word on what was happening behind the closed double doors to the operating room.  He’d followed them into the room and was there long enough to hear them discuss the possibility of having to amputate one of Ari’s legs from the knee down, but, at the sound of his mournful moan, they realized that he was in the room and promptly escorted him out.Now, he paced the floor, feeling helpless, while he waited for someone to come out of that room and tell him what they done or were going to do to help his wife.Kendra’s soft voice asking him how Ari was doing brought his attention back to his surroundings.  He looked around him as if he was unsure of where he was before comprehension set in and h

Kendra studied the broad shoulders of her husband as she followed him out of the building to a location that afforded them enough privacy to speak freely.  It took a good deal of convincing to keep him from pummeling Felix and it was clear that he was upset with her. She couldn’t comprehend his thinking.  Hadn’t he been the one to claim that it was just a body and not the real her? Didn’t he say that he didn’t care if she had sex with Felix?  He hadn’t actually come right out and said it, but he also didn’t say “don’t do it” when she asked him about it.  Therefore, she assumed that he just didn’t care.When they reached a spot that satisfied him, he turned to face her.  His face was almost purple with rage as he struggled to regulate his breathing so that he could speak in a steady and non-threatening voice.“I’ve never seen you this angry,” she said with surprise as